Gaza

Cross post from Examiner.com.

UPDATE: Report-back from Trade Office Protest | Photos from Friday | Feb. 18 Protest at U of M

For the second time in two weeks, protesters will gather at 3pm Friday at the Minnesota Trade Office on 332 Minnesota Street in downtown St. Paul to demand an end to trade with Israel. On January 23rd, activists entered and sought to occupy the office, then exited the building when police arrived and demanded they do so. The group released a statement saying, "The Minnesota Trade Office is the bureaucratic middleman in the economic relationship between Minnesota and Israel, facilitating the economic collaboration of the nations and their corporations that exceeds $125 million in domestic exports annually, of which $4 million alone comes from military contracts with local arms merchants such as Napco International in Hopkins, and Alliant Techsystems in Edina."

TCIMC update 11:15am: The action is over; the activists inside the trade office building chose to go outside rather than be arrested after officials called the St. Paul Police Department.

from a statement released this morning:

At 10am this morning, January 23rd, 2009, approximately 20 local residents entered and sought to occupy the Minnesota Trade Office in downtown Saint Paul demanding an immediate end to all trade between Minnesotan companies and the State of Israel. They have issued the following statement signed by some of the participants and their supporters:

"We are here at the Minnesota Trade Office today, as we should be every day, demanding an end to all business between Minnesota and the State of Israel. While the recent devastation of the Gaza strip weighs heavy on our conscience, the violent occupation of Palestine and the systematic killing of Palestinians is unfortunately nothing new. Although Palestinians, and all people, deserve sovereignty, justice, and peace, we are here today as residents of Minnesota, many of us Jewish, because state-sanctioned genocide in the occupied territories continues without relent.

See also: Postcards of Hangings, Thoughts on Gaza by Nigel Parry

Next action: Monday in NE Minneapolis

(click photos for big)

crowd of 300-350 met at loring park - 15 degrees, light snow

They used to sell postcards of hangings. Now we simply pay the cable company so we can turn on our TVs and watch Gaza.

Watching Gaza. Gawking. Gaping. At an unmistakeable wasteland of man-made misery.

Man-made misery. Man-made. Not natural. Not a Tsunami, nor an earthquake, and certainly no accident.